Isabella Gamez (born February 1, 1999) is a Filipina pair skater who competes for the Philippines with her partner Alexander Korovin. Gamez and Korovin are the first pair from Southeast Asia and the Philippines to qualify and compete in the final segment of the 2023 World Figure Skating Championships.[1] They are the first international medalists for the Philippines in pairs skating,[2] and two-time Philippine National Champions for pairs skating bringing attention to the sport in the tropical country.
| Isabella Gamez | |
|---|---|
 Gamez in 2022. | |
| Other names | Gámez |
| Born | February 1, 1999 Cape Coral, Florida |
| Height | 1.49 m (4 ft 10+1⁄2 in) |
| Figure skating career | |
| Country |  Philippines (since 2018)  Spain (2017–18)  United States (until 2017) |
| Partner | Alexander Korovin (since 2021) David-Alexandre Paradis (2019–20) Tòn Cónsul (2017–18) Griffin Schwab (2016–17) |
| Coach | Dmitri Savin Fedor Klimov |
| Skating club | Philippine Skating Union |
| Began skating | 2005 |
With her former skating partner, David-Alexandre Paradis, Isabella competed in the final segment at the 2020 Four Continents Championships. They were the first figure skating pairs team to represent the Philippines at International Skating Union competitions starting in 2019.
Competing for Spain with her former skating partner, Tòn Cónsul, she is the 2018 Spanish Junior National champion and finished 13th at the 2018 World Junior Championships.
Personal life
editGamez was born on February 1, 1999, to Filipino parents, Gerardo Alisangco Gamez and Maria Victoria Webb Ramirez. Both parents were born and raised in Quezon City.[3] Gamez is the grandniece of former Philippines Olympics basketball player, Senator Freddie Webb on her mother's side.[4] Her paternal grandfather is Dr. Gilberto Gamez, former Dean of University of Santo Tomas in the Philippines. She grew up regularly spending time in Manila, maintaining a close tie to her Philippine roots and both sides of her family living there.[5] In addition to figure skating, Gamez is a scuba diver, who spends time in Anilao, Mabini, Batangas. She also enjoys painting and baking.[6]
On March 20, 2024, Isabella Gamez was among the major Filipina athlete awardees at the inaugural Women in Sports Awards, hosted by the Philippine Sports Commission at the Rizal Memorial Coliseum in Manila. [7]
Career
editEarly career
edit
Gamez started as a singles skater before switching to pairs starting as a novice.[8] Gamez teamed up with Griffin Schwab in pairs from the 2015–16 season. They earned the novice silver medal in their first season at the 2016 U.S. Championships.
In 2017, Gamez teamed up with Spanish skater Tòn Cónsul to represent Spain for juniors pairs. They competed at two Junior Grand Prix events, finishing 11th in Zagreb and 13th in Gdańsk. Gamez/Cónsul then won the 2018 Spanish junior national title and the 2018 Mentor Toruń Cup. They ended the season with a thirteenth-place finish at the 2018 World Junior Championships.[9]
Partnership with Paradis
edit2019–2020 season
editGamez began representing the Philippines in a new senior pair with Canadian skater David-Alexandre Paradis. Gamez/Paradis competed at three Challenger Series events, becoming the first Filipino and Southeast Asian pair to compete in an International Skating Union competition.[10] They then finished seventh at Volvo Open Cup. Gamez/Paradis also earned the technical minimums for the 2020 Four Continents Championships to become the first Filipino and Southeast Asian pair to compete at an ISU Championship. They finished ninth at Four Continents. Gamez/Paradis concluded their season with an eleventh-place finish at the Challenge Cup.[11]
Gamez and Paradis split due to travel restrictions and inability to train together during the COVID-19 pandemic.[12] Paradis retired from pairs skating to focus on his coaching career.[13]
Partnership with Korovin
edit2020–2021 and 2021–2022 seasons
editIn August 2021, the Philippine Skating Union announced that Gamez had teamed up with Russian skater Aleksandr Korovin to represent the Philippines.[14] Korovin and Gamez were paired by 2014 Winter Olympics pairs champion Maxim Trankov and Olympic, World Championship coach Marina Zoueva. They met and began training together in early 2021. For the 2021–2022 season, Gamez and Korovin focused on their training at Hertz Arena with coach, Marina Zoueva, and her team in Estero, Florida.
2022–2023 season
editThe Gamez/Korovin pair made their debut at the 2022 CS Finlandia Trophy, where they placed ninth after two years of inactivity.[12][15] The pair shared before their international debut, Hurricane Ian devastated Southwest Florida affecting their training venue and practice schedule a week before Finland.[5] In their second competition together, Gamez and Korovin achieved a historical milestone for the Philippines. They won the first-ever medal for Philippine pairs skating in an international competition, a silver medal at the Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur in Nice, France.[16] They competed at the 2022 CS Warsaw Cup placing 11th, and withdrew from the Golden Spin of Zagreb due to injury. Gamez/Korovin continued the season to become the first senior pairs team to win the Philippine Figure Skating Championships, bringing awareness to the pairs discipline in the tropical country as the only competitors in December 2022. They qualified and competed at the 2023 Four Continents Championships in Colorado Springs placing ninth. They competed at the Challenge Cup in Tilburg, Netherlands, where they placed 6th and earned the technical minimums to become the first Southeast Asian and Philippine pairs team to qualify and compete at the 2023 World Figure Skating Championships in Saitama, Japan.[1] They competed in the final segment at the 2023 World Figure Skating Championships ending a five-year drought for the Philippines at the World Figure Skating Championships, wherein the last Philippine skater to compete was Michael Christian Martinez in 2017.
2023–2024 season
edit
Prior to the season, it was announced that Gamez/Korovin had relocated to Montclair, New Jersey, where they were now being coached by Dmitri Savin, Alexei Bychenko, Evgeni Krasnopolski, and Galit Chait.[17]
They would start their second season together by competing at John Nicks Pairs Challenge in New York, NY and 2023 CS Autumn Classic International in Montreal, Canada in September 2023. They withdrew from October 2023 competitions due to a COVID-diagnosis and returned to compete at Philippine Figure Skating Championships in November 2023, where they won their second National Championship title at SM Mall of Asia in Manila, Philippines. In January 2024, they competed at the 2024 Four Continents Championships in Shanghai, China, where they placed eleventh and competed at the 2024 World Figure Skating Championships in Montreal, Canada as the only competitors representing the Philippines at the annual event.
In February 2024, the Philippine Skating Union announced that House of Representatives Bills 8486 and 9537, along with Senate Bill 2461, proposed by Representatives Aniela Bianca Tolentino and Faustino Michael Dy, and Senator Francis Tolentino, were approved by the Committee on Justice and Human Rights after public hearings. The first reading passed for granting Philippine citizenship to Alexander Korovin, with the second and third readings at the Philippine Congress to follow.
On May 8, 2024, the Philippine House Committee on Justice approved on third reading House Bill No. 10048, with a vote of 180 lawmakers, granting Filipino citizenship to Korovin. The legislation which substituted House Bills no. 8486 and 9537, required him to take an oath of allegiance to the Philippines before a public officer, and registration thereof with the Bureau of Immigration. “I will give my 100%”, he testified with the Philippine House Committee on Justice on February. This meant that Korovin would be eligible to compete for the Philippines at the 2026 Winter Olympics.[18]
2024–2025 season
editPrior to the season, Fedor Klimov would join Gamez/Korovin's coaching team.[19] They would begin the season by finishing ninth at the 2024 CS John Nicks International Pairs Competition.[20] They went on to compete at the 2024 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur, however after completing the short program segment, the pairs free skate event was cancelled due to poor weather conditions. Gamez/Korovin were awarded the silver medal based on their short program result.[21][22]
Not initially assigned to compete on the Grand Prix series, Gamez/Korovin's names were entered to compete at the 2024 NHK Trophy to replace Becarri/Guarise of Italy due to Beccari's foot injury.[23][24] However, they were unable to accept the assignment due to the short notice invitation. [25] They were later assigned to the 2024 Cup of China following the withdrawal of Yang/Deng of China.[26][27]
Programs
editWith Korovin
edit| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2024–2025 [19] |
|
|
| 2023–2024 [17] |
| |
| 2022–2023 [6] |
|
|
With Paradis
edit| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2019–2020 [10] |
|
|
With Cónsul
edit| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2017–2018 [9] |
|
|
With Schwab
edit| Season | Short program | Free skating |
|---|---|---|
| 2016–2017 [28] |
|
|
| 2015–2016 [29] |
|
|
Competitive highlights
editPair skating with Aleksandr Korovin (for the Philippines)
edit| International [6] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Event | 22–23 | 23–24 | 24–25 |
| Worlds | 18th | 21st | |
| Four Continents | 9th | 11th | |
| GP Cup of China | 7th | ||
| CS Autumn Classic | 10th | ||
| CS Finlandia | 9th | ||
| CS Golden Spin | WD | TBD | |
| CS John Nicks Pairs | 6th | 9th | |
| CS Warsaw Cup | 11th | ||
| Trophée Métropole Nice | 2nd | 2nd | |
| Challenge Cup | 6th | ||
| National [6] | |||
| Philippine Champ. | 1st | 1st | |
Pair skating with David-Alexandre Paradis (for the Philippines)
edit
| International[11] | |
|---|---|
| Event | 2019–20 |
| Four Continents | 9th |
| CS Finlandia Trophy | 9th |
| CS Golden Spin | 14th |
| CS Warsaw Cup | 11th |
| Challenge Cup | 11th |
| Volvo Open Cup | 7th |
Pair skating with Tòn Cònsul Vivar (for Spain)
edit
| International: Junior[30] | |
|---|---|
| Event | 2017–18 |
| Junior Worlds | 13th |
| JGP Croatia | 11th |
| JGP Poland | 13th |
| Toruń Cup | 1st |
| National[30] | |
| Spanish Champ. | 1st J |
Pair skating with Griffin Schwab (for the United States)
edit| National[31] | |
|---|---|
| Event | 2016–17 |
| U.S. Champ. | 9th J |
Detailed results
editPair skating with Aleksandr Korovin (for the Philippines)
edit| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | Score | P | Score | P | Score | ||
| Sep 3–4, 2024 |  2024 CS John Nicks International Pairs Competition
|
6 | 57.28 | 9 | 99.76 | 9 | 157.04 |
| Oct 16–20, 2024 |  2024 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur
|
2 | 55.73 | – | – | 2 | 55.73 |
| Nov 22–24, 2024 |  2024 Cup of China
|
7 | 50.65 | 7 | 100.61 | 7 | 151.26 |
Note: The senior pairs free skate at the 2024 Trophée Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur was cancelled on account of inclement weather. It was later announced that the short program results would be considered as the final results for the competition.[32]
| 2023–2024 season | ||||
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 18–24, 2024 | 2024 World Championships | 21 49.70 |
- |
21 49.70 |
| January 30-February 4, 2024 | 2024 Four Continents Championships | 12 49.79 |
11 93.07 |
11 142.86 |
| September 14–17, 2023 | 2023 CS Autumn Classic International | 10
37.40 |
10
85.25 |
10
122.65 |
| September 6–7, 2023 | 2023 John Nicks Pairs Challenge | 8 46.73 |
6 91.66 |
6 138.39 |
| 2022-23 season | ||||
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total |
| March 20–26, 2023 | 2023 World Championships | 19 53.29 |
18 93.78 |
18 147.07 |
| February 23–26, 2023 | 2023 Challenge Cup | 6 54.74 |
8 95.27 |
6 150.01 |
| February 7–12, 2023 | 2023 Four Continents Championships | 10 39.69 |
9 73.79 |
9 113.48 |
| December 7–10, 2022 | 2022 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb | 14 39.71 |
WD | WD |
| November 17–20, 2022 | 2022 CS Warsaw Cup | 11 42.94 |
11 84.66 |
11 127.60 |
| October 4–9, 2022 | 2022 CS Finlandia Trophy | 9 44.25 |
9 78.15 |
9 122.40 |
With Paradis
edit| 2019–20 season | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Event | SP | FS | Total |
| February 20–23, 2020 | 2020 Challenge Cup | 11 45.38 |
11 82.74 |
11 128.12 |
| February 4–9, 2020 | 2020 Four Continents Championships | 10 47.34 |
9 80.09 |
9 127.43 |
| December 4–7, 2019 | 2019 CS Golden Spin of Zagreb | 14 47.50 |
15 88.40 |
14 135.90 |
| November 14–17, 2019 | 2019 CS Warsaw Cup | 12 47.99 |
8 97.05 |
11 145.04 |
| November 5–10, 2019 | 2019 Volvo Open Cup | 7 44.37 |
7 82.42 |
7 126.79 |
| October 11–13, 2019 | 2019 CS Finlandia Trophy | 10 43.09 |
9 81.61 |
9 124.70 |
References
edit- ^ a b Ramos, Josef (26 February 2023). "Gamez, partner make worlds". Business Mirror. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
- ^ Carandang, Justin Kenneth (23 October 2022). "Duo of Isabella Gamez and Aleksandr Korovin claim Philippines' first int'l medal in figure skating pairs". GMA News Online. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- ^ Atencio, Peter (26 October 2022). "Filipina, Russian partner seek to improve further after silver-medal feat". Manila Standard. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- ^ Carandang, Justin Kenneth (1 November 2022). "Figure skater Isabella Gamez hopes she can represent Philippines well like her lolo Freddie Webb". GMA News Online. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
- ^ a b "Fil-Am pair skater, Russian partner make international debut". CNN Philippines. 10 October 2022. Archived from the original on 18 October 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
- ^ a b c d "Isabella GAMEZ / Aleksandr KOROVIN: 2022/2023". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 8 December 2022.
- ^ "PH's best gather for All-Women Sports Awards March 20". Philippine News Agency. 17 March 2024. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
- ^ "Isabella Gamez". RinkResults.
- ^ a b "Isabella GAMEZ / Ton CONSUL: 2017/2018". International Skating Union.
- ^ a b "Isabella GAMEZ / David-Alexandre PARADIS: 2019/2020". International Skating Union.
- ^ a b "Isabella GAMEZ / David-Alexandre PARADIS: Competition Results". International Skating Union.
- ^ a b Pedralvez, Bong (7 October 2022). "Fil-Am skater, Russian partner debut for PH". Malaya Business Insight. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
- ^ Gamez, Isabella [@bellagamez] (August 21, 2020). "This year has been a time of change for many. After a historic season of skating, David and I have decided to no longer continue skating together" – via Instagram.
- ^ Philippine Skating Union [@phskating] (August 17, 2021). "Curious about how Figure Skating Pair athletes Isabella and Alex surpass their challenges?" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Pedralvez, Bong (10 October 2022). "Fil-Am skater, Russian partner ninth in Finland". Malaya Business Insight. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
- ^ Carandang, Justin Kenneth (23 October 2022). "Duo of Isabella Gamez and Aleksandr Korovin claim Philippines' first int'l medal in figure skating pairs". GMA News Online. Retrieved 26 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Isabella GAMEZ / Aleksandr KOROVIN: 2023/2024". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 6 April 2024.
- ^ Villanueva, Edwin (May 9, 2024). "Congress okays Filipino citizenship for figure skater Alexander Korovin". The Philippine Star. Retrieved May 10, 2024.
- ^ a b "Isabella GAMEZ / Aleksandr KOROVIN: 2024/2025". International Skating Union. Archived from the original on 7 November 2024.
- ^ "Isabella GAMEZ / Aleksandr KOROVIN: Competition Results". International Skating Union. International Skating Union. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ "The Junior Women's Free, Junior Ice Dance Free, and Senior Pairs Free events at Trophy Metropole Nice Côte d'Azur had to be cancelled due to poor weather. The final results of these categories are the Short/Rhythm results". X. Anything GOEs. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ a b "Isabella Gamez / Alexander Korovin". Skating Scores. Skating Scores. Retrieved 17 October 2024.
- ^ @AnythingGOE (October 30, 2024). "🇮🇹 Lucrezia Beccari / Matteo Guarise have withdrawn from NHK Trophy" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ @AnythingGOE (October 31, 2024). "🇵🇭 Isabella Gamez / Aleksandr Korovin have been assigned to NHK Trophy" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ @AnythingGOE (November 1, 2024). "🇵🇭 Isabella Gamez / Aleksandr Korovin were unable to take the NHK Trophy spot as they couldn't get visas in time" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "🇨🇳 Yixi Yang / Shunyang Deng have withdrawn from Cup of China". X. Anything GOEs. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
- ^ "🇵🇭 Isabella Gamez / Aleksandr Korovin have been assigned to Cup of China (and confirmed they are actually able to go this time!)". X. Anything GOEs. Retrieved 12 November 2024.
- ^ "2017 U.S. Nationals: Junior Pairs". Unseen Skaters Online. January 17, 2017.
- ^
- Terry, Michael (January 17, 2016). "Kopmar, Barrett set up for second U.S. title in a row". icenetwork. Archived from the original on January 18, 2016.
- Rutherford, Lynn (January 19, 2016). "Kopmar, Barrett add novice title to budding résumé". icenetwork. Archived from the original on January 20, 2016.
- ^ a b "Isabella GAMEZ / Ton CONSUL: Competition Results". International Skating Union.
- ^ "Isabella Gamez & Griffin Schwab". Stats on Ice.
- ^ @AnythingGOE (October 17, 2024). "The Junior Women's Free, Junior Ice Dance Free, and Senior Pairs Free events at Trophy Metropole Nice Côte d'Azur had to be cancelled due to poor weather" (Tweet) – via Twitter.